Overview and Status of the Giant Magellan Telescope ProjectOptical-IR telescopes have been the drivers for astronomical discovery for four centuries. The next generation of "extremely large" ground-based telescopes will open new discovery space that will revolutionize exoplanet research and expand the frontiers of all areas of astrophysics and cosmology. In this talk, I will provide an overview and ...

When: 11:00 AM - 12:00 PMWhere: Menlo ParkCost: Free

Ethics and AI - A Fireside Chat with Tolga Kurtoglu and Kara SwisherThere is a general feeling that technology is inherently neutral even among those developing AI solutions. This misunderstanding presents a growing challenge as artificial intelligence evolves and spreads into virtually every facet of human society.This Q&A with Tolga Kurtoglu, CEO at PARC and Kara Swisher, award-winning technology journalist and co-founder of Recode, ...

Craving some deliciously inspired science? Get a taste for these controversial but always sweet carbohydrates at Pairings and partake in a tempting array of sugar-inspired presentations and activities.Pairings: Sugar With Kevin Godes, Julie Yu, and Clay Reynolds 7:00 p.m. Sure, sugar is a versatile sweetener, and we eat a lot of it but ...

BAS is inviting you to participate in a Bad Ad Hoc Hypothesis program where YOU will be the presenter. Pretty much all Ad Hoc hypotheses are bad, but the Bad Ad Hoc Hypothesis (or BAH) has become something of a term of art among science fans. Examples of BAH Fests ...

When: 7:30 PM - 9:30 PMWhere: BerkeleyCost: Free

Geminid Meteor ShowerBundle up and join hundreds of community members who flock to Chabot to get above the urban light pollution to view the last spectacular meteor shower of 2018, learn about heavenly bodies and wish upon the “falling stars”.Hot chocolate inclued

When: 11:00 PM - 3:30 AMWhere: OaklandCost: $8

Friday, 12/14/18

Advanced PhotographyTake your photography to the next level with Doc Miles (professional photographer and volunteer)!Gain a better understanding of light, composition, and how to create a message with your photographs. Learn how to “get it right in camera”. This class will help you improve your skills at specialties like night photography, ...

Habitat Restoration: Love Lake LagunitasStewardship is an ethic that embodies planning and management of the land to support healthy habitat. Become a steward of Mt Tamalpais by joining us in a morning of habitat restoration.Depending on the weather, volunteers will remove French broom or young Douglas-fir trees.Our grassy meadows are home to sun-loving plants and animals and ...

When: 9:00 AM - 12:00 PMWhere: FairfaxCost: Free

The Bay Model Wants You!!! Become part of Sausalito’s very own attraction known around the world!We have a variety of volunteer positions that are suited for people just like you! Greet visitors, lead tours, work with school groups, and more! Come and be a part of one of the largest working hydraulic models in existence. ...

Free Film Screening: The End of Meat, a documentary"The End of Meat" is a feature documentary that explores the idea of a post-meat world. It will include interviews with philosophers, scientists, artists and activists who offer their insight and progressive ideas about the role of animals in our society. The End of Meat is a sequel to 2013's ...

When: 1:00 PM - 4:30 PMWhere: San FranciscoCost: FREE

Liberty Ships and the Lesser Known FactsA WWII emergency shipyard once operated here in Sausalito. Over the years, Liberty Ships have become an icon of WWII. We know a lot about the shipyards, the Liberty Ships and the people who built them, but there is more to this story that has gotten lost in time. Come ...

Come to China Camp State Park to learn what extreme high tides, commonly called King Tides, can tell us about sea level rise. As part of NOAA’s National Estuarine Research Reserve System, China Camp’s tidal marshes play a key role in helping scientists understand how marshes respond to sea level ...

Jazz Under the Stars - CANCELEDCome peer through our telescopes and see craters on the Moon, the visible planets, star clusters, and more while we listen to CSM's very own KCSM Jazz 91 FM. Dress warmly. Free parking in Marie Curie Lot 5. Directions are available on the Maps, Directions & Parking page.Canceled due to weather.

Beginning BirdingCome explore the bustling birdlife that call the Marin Headlands home with volunteer Jane Haley in this easy walk along Rodeo Lagoon! Bring field guides and binoculars. Dress in layers. For ages 8 and older. No dogs. Reservation required, please call 415-331-1540.

When: 9:30 AM - 11:30 AMWhere: SausalitoCost: Free

Science Film Festival: 'Robot & Frank'In the near future, a cantankerous retired jewel thief receives a gift from his son: a robot caretaker to look after him and keep him company. Robot & Frank examines how Frank's relationship with his new robot companion helps him cope with a rapidly changing world and the realities of ...

When: 11:00 AM - 8:00 PMWhere: BerkeleyCost: See weblink

Monday, 12/17/18

Big Screen Science: DIE HARD - SOLD OUTTwelve terrorists. One cop. The odds are against John McClane... that's just the way we like it. Join Kishore Hari (@sciencequiche) and Jeff Silverman (@J_M_Silverman) as we learn if an air duct can actually support John McLane's weight, how to safely walk on glass, and we'll finally settle that age old question ...

When: 7:00 PMWhere: San FranciscoCost: $15.50

Training for Mushroom CollectionThis event is a training session for field collection and preservation of mushrooms in Alameda County. Citizen Scientists are needed to gather and process mushrooms for long-term storage in study collections. When training is completed participants will be invited for forays to gather mushrooms of all shapes and sizes. Volunteers ...

When: 7:00 PM - 9:00 PMWhere: OaklandCost:

Tuesday, 12/18/18

Wildlife Picture Index ProjectCome contribute to the Marin Wildlife Picture Index Project! This project depends on volunteer "Community Scientists" to help maintain wildlife cameras and process photos, and we are especially looking to train and retain volunteers for the long-term. At this training, we will be viewing and cataloging photos (on the computer) acquired ...

For more than four decades, astronomers have been searching for technosignatures: signals coming from distant technological civilizations. The first SETI searches began by searching for extraterrestrial radio waves in the 1960s and have more recently expanded to include optical (visible) signals, such as powerful laser pulses. We know that like technological progress, the search ...

When scientists see changes in an ecosystem they can often hear them as well. Monitoring different species’ sounds or bioacoustics is one method to quickly detect environmental change. But urban underwater habitats like San Francisco Bay are dominated by ship and vessel noise, which can drown out most biological sounds. ...

Basics of Mushroom IdentificationKingman Bond-Graham discovered the incredibly vast world of fungi at the age of 10. While playing on his family property in Mendocino County, he noticed thousands of mushrooms. After crafting a science project for school, he continued with his fungi fascination into adulthood.Kingman has been collecting and studying the mushrooms ...

taste of science: Human Genome and Travel to MARS!Checklist for Mars: how to get humans there and back again, in one piece?What happens to the human body in space, especially, on a three-year round trip to Mars, and what are we doing to avoid it? I will give a brief overview of some of the risks of spaceflight, ...

When: 7:00 PM - 9:30 PMWhere: Redwood CityCost: $5

Wings of Wonder: Saving Bats around the WorldDr. Winifred Frick is Chief Scientist at Bat Conservation International and an Associate Research Professor in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology at UC Santa Cruz. Dr. Frick has studied bats for nearly 20 years and has worked around the world, including places such as Mexico, Rwanda, Guinea, Fiji, and Jamaica to study ...

How can we design a strategy for the search for life elsewhere - or to understand what the future will hold for life on Earth and beyond - without extrapolating from pre-biotic chemistry and evolution? The origin and evolution of life often seems an unpredictable oddity, based on the quirks ...